Local News in Brief : 11 AMI Workers Flee Formaldehyde Spill
Eleven employees at the AMI Medical Center of North Hollywood were overcome by formaldehyde fumes Tuesday after a nurse accidentally knocked the nozzle off a 5-gallon bottle of the liquid.
The hospital workers, including nurses and technicians, were treated for eye and throat irritation after 3 to 4 gallons of formaldehyde spilled on the floor of a recovery room about 11:40 a.m., hospital spokesman James Bennie said. There were no patients in the room at the time, Bennie said.
No one was evacuated, and a hazardous-materials team cleaned up the spill about 1:30 p.m., said Jim Wells, a Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman. Formaldehyde is used as a disinfectant and preservative.
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